Struggling to make their mark, Iceland will aim for nothing less than a win when they take on already-qualified Croatia in their last Group D clash at the Rostov Arena in Russia on Tuesday.
Live updates:
Minute 31 -- Iceland with a free-kick in a good shooting position, Gylfi Sigurdsson fired it towards goal and it almost sneaked into the bottom corner. However, Kalinic read the effort well and managed to gather the ball.
Minute 26 -- Iceland have looked good in counters and they have tried to take advantage of a few sloppy passes by Croatia but neither team have been good in the final third.
Minute 15 -- In the other match of Group D, Argentina are a goal up against Nigeria. Of course, Lionel Messi is the scorer.
Minute 10 -- Iceland look to break and start their first attack. Finnbogason sprints down to the right of the Croatian box with support arriving but his cross is poor.
Minute 8 -- Pjaca is sprinting down the Iceland half before going down just outside the box but the referee isn't interested.
Minute 4-- Croatia are understandably dominating the possession in the starting minutes.
Peeeeeeeeppppp!! And.. we're off!
Confirmed Lineups:
Iceland:
Starting XI: Halldorsson, Saevarsson, Ingason, Ragnar, Sigurdsson, Magnusson, Gunnarsson, Hallfredsson, Johann Berg Gudmundsson, Gylfi Sigurdsson, Bjarnason, Finnbogason.
Subs: Schram, Fridjonsson, Albert Gudmundsson, Sigurdarson, Arnason, Eyjolfsson, Olafur Ingi Skulason, Gislason, Traustason, Bodvarsson, Ari Freyr Skulason, Runarsson.
Croatia:
Starting XI:Lovre Kalinic, Jedvaj, Corluka, Caleta-Car, Pivaric, Modric, Badelj, Pjaca, Kovacic, Perisic, Kramaric.
Subs: Livakovic, Vrsaljko, Strinic, Lovren, Rakitic, Brozovic, Bradaric, Mandzukic, Rebic, Vida, Subasic.
Iceland vs Croatia
Croatia vs Iceland: Match Preview
Croatia are already through to the Round of 16 with victories over Argentina and Nigeria while Iceland played a draw with Argentina before losing to Nigeria.
Iceland's fate does not only lie in their own hands as a win on Tuesday may not be enough for them but will also hope that Nigeria lose to Argentina.
Croatia tops the group with six points while the Heimir Hallgrimsson-coached Iceland have just a single point in their kitty and lie at the third spot.
After already achieving their first objective, Croatia would likely bench some of their players against Iceland.
On Tuesday, Croatia could also become the fourth team in the history of the World Cup to win all three of their group games without conceding a goal.
Six Croatian players -- Ivan Rakitic, Ante Rebic, Sime Vrsaljko, Mario Mandzukic, Marcelo Brozovic and Vedran Corluka -- are one booking away from being suspended for the last 16 and some of them are likely to be rested against Iceland.
This way if you still believe! pic.twitter.com/X4YXHF4gfp
— Alfreð Finnbogason (@A_Finnbogason) June 24, 2018
Hinting at resting these players in Tuesday's clash, Croatia head coach Zlatko Dalic said: "I'd like to top the group. But, we have to take care because we have some players on yellow cards, so I will change the line-up."
"I will not start those who are on yellow cards because it's too much of a risk, there are 22 players who can play," he added.
Iceland, on the other hand, are known for bouncing back from defeats such as the one they suffered against Nigeria.
The islanders employed a 4-5-1 formation against Argentina before switching to a 4-4-2 formation against the African side.
Emil Hallfredsson, who missed the match against Nigeria, is expected to return to the starting XI along with Johann Gudmundsson, who is almost fit again.
Commenting on their clash, Hallgrimsson said the game will be a tough test for both the sides.
"We know the scenario when we play Croatia - it's (always) going to be really tough games," Hallgrimsson told mediapersons.
"Normally it's steel to steel, not a lot of chances, always a lot of yellow cards. In three games out of four, we've had a red card," he added.
Iceland will mostly rely on Gylfi Sigurdsson, their highest-profile player, who missed a late penalty against Nigeria and a goal could have pulled his team back into the game.
Iceland vs Croatia: Trivia
Croatia could become the fifth team in the history of the World Cup to win all three of their group games without conceding a goal, a feat previously achieved by Brazil at Mexico 1986, Italy on home soil in 1990, Argentina at France 1998 and Uruguay here at Russia 2018.
Iceland vs Croatia: Possible team line-ups
Iceland: Hannes Halldorsson; Birkir Saevarsson, Kari Arnason, Ragnar Sigurdson, Hordur Magnusson; Aron Gunnarsson, Emil Hallfredsson, Johann Gudmundsson, Gylfi Sigurdsson, Birkir Bjarnason; Alfred Finnbogason
Croatia: Lovre Kalinic; Tin Jedvaj, Vedran Corluka, Domagoj Vida, Josip Pivaric; Milan Badelj, Mateo Kovacic, Filip Bradaric; Marko Pjaca, Andrej Kramaric, Ivan Perisic
Iceland vs Croatia: There is more
Even a win may not be enough for Iceland, as they will need to keep an eye on Argentina’s meeting with Nigeria in Saint Petersburg. If Nigeria win, Iceland will go out. If Argentina draw or win, it will all come down to goal difference.
When and Where to watch: Iceland vs Croatia
Time: 11:30 PM (IST)
In today's Group D match, Iceland vs Croatia, will be played in Rostov on Tuesday, 26, 2018 at 11:30 PM (IST).
Iceland vs Croatia match will be broadcast on Sony Ten 2, Sony Ten 2 HD, Sony Six and Sony Six HD in English Commentary and Sony Ten 3 and Sony 3 HD in Hindi Commentary.
Iceland vs Croatia match will be available for live streaming on Sony Liv also. And Both Airtel and Jio would broadcast the matches for free to their respective subscribers.